Ideas for organising kids toys

rosie383

Thanks Aarons mummy for this idea! I just had another idea of where to put the 'hammock'. Under the top bunk at the foot end, so it is out of the way, but not in the way of the head end.
Think that's the afternoon entertainment for the kids sorted! Off to find and old sheet now and get the kids deciding which toys can get the first go in the hammock!

Drummer82

Aarons_mummy wrote: »

A hammock from an old sheet, just join the corners up at the shorter ends and tie a knot in. You could attach to the wall with pins or coloured cord, if the window was big enough you could do it across the curtain rail.

If you wanted to make it fancier you could do applique or dye the sheet a colour to co-ordinate with the room, o0o0o actually if you have any baby clothes left you could cut out patches and attach them to the sheet, a sentimental but organised way of storing the toys.

I think I may have to steal this idea

Your going to steal you own idea,:D no you cant its mine,:rotfl:
Thanks though might have to try it, I found an old cot sheet which would be perfect just figuring out the best way to attach it to the wall.

Ive got an old quality street tin just emptied today was gonna decorate it with some wrapping paper and use it as storage for sometihng, but I dont think it will be long before it will get ripped up, but worth a go.

rowsew

My mess monsters share a bedroom, they are 6 and 7. If allowed, their possessions would be spread across the whole house, but I instigated a 'clean floor' policy a while ago when I was wading in kids cr*p. Basically, if it's still on the floor at the close of play, it goes in the charity shop bag, or worse, the bin. Only had to enforce the rule once each. Re storage of said child items, I have a small cupboard for art stuff and one box each for them in the front room - the farm set, and the train/wooden town stuff. In their bedroom we have a small Trofast system from IKEA, labelled drawers for types of toys like musical instruments, puzzles and games, and one bigger drawer each for whatever they want to keep in there. Under their beds they each have a long flat box for their dressing up clothes. I also like them to put away their stuff when they've finished using it so that the house doesn't fill up with mess. I have a bad back so can't spend a lot of time picking things up, and eventually, they do listen. HTH xx

Mortmain_Dreamer

My kids are 5 and 2, and the big toy problem never ends.

Eventually I got so fed up of all their stuff that I got rid of most of it. I know it sounds harsh, but I did a little at a time. My kids had so many toys that they had no respect for any of them, throwing and breaking toys and books without a thought. So we really went back to basics.

One night after they had gone to bed I gathered every toy they owned. I sorted through all the sets and put the pieces back together. I threw away anything broken.

Next I put their very favourite toys to one side, knowing they would be heartbroken without them. I was surprised as this pile was so small! Next I put any duplicated toys into a 'donate' pile, they seemed to have many similar toys. I got rid of the toys I knew they weren't particularly bothered about, and put everything else into black bags so I could have more time to make a decision!

I bought plastic shoeboxes from Mr A and used these to corral any sets e.g. lego in one, cars in another, little people in another. I put these on a bookshelf in the dining room, along with other toys too big to fit into boxes. I put a tub trug next to the bookcase to store any other toys e.g. dolls. I told the children that they could pick 5 toys to keep in their bedrooms, and once they began looking after them they could pick one more, and so on. All games and puzzles were stored in my son's wardrobe, anything that didn't fit on the shelves was put into the shed for rotation. The kids were informed that they could only play with one set at a time to stop them getting muddled up again. If they don't keep this rule they lose the toy for one week. Before Christmas and birthdays we have a sort out, and the kids help me (!) donate any unwanted toys to make room for the new ones.

The kids became more inventive with the toys they had left, which was an unexpected bonus. My 2yo decided her favourite toy was the peg bag!! When I finally got back to those stored bin bags I found it much easier to start getting rid of more stuff. It really is true that's it's so much easier to keep less stuff tidy! The kids are much better now about tidying up, especially the youngest, I think I got her early enough! They treat their toys with more respect, although they are not angels and this is an ongoing battle. Sorry about the log post, this is a subject close to my heart Good luck!

Drummer82

Thanks everyone. I think I'll give up until they go back to school next week, its a losing battle at the moment. Ive managed to do a bit of sorting but no where near enough to make a difference.
I went to poundland who had nothing at all really storage wise, I'll have to go to the bigger one which is further away, and see if they have anything.

nannyboo1

icecreamdogpark wrote: »

Yes i childmind and i too was going too suggest toy rotation :j and even with my toddlers i teach them we put these toys away then you can have out what you want if i know they are not going to play with the toy ie the duplo is a favourite to tip out kids love the noise then i either distract them onto another toy or sit with them for a bit to encourage them to actually play with what they`ve chosen

I agree with this (and yes I am a childminder too lol). At the moment I care for three under three 2 who are not 2 yet and they all tidy up after themselves (and yes I will be the first to admit it is easier when they are not your own - wish I had the same willpower against chocolate as I do against stubborn toddlers).

They have use of a very large playroom and the front room adjoining and can make as much mess as possible but they tidy up before lunch and tea (easier to do when they all like their food) its amazing what the words that's okay if you don't want to tidy up we don't have to go for lunch -amazing how quickly they tidy away then.

charlies-aunt

Don't panic! Its maddening to have all those toys underfoot at the moment but it won't last forever ......in the twinkling of an eye, you'll be packing them off to uni and wishing you could go back to waddling through the sea of playthings!

Maybe it might be worth trying Freecycle and posting a "Wanted" ad?

Or the supermarket for some of those very sturdy stackable cardboard fruit boxes?

Weeding out the broken and outgrown toys can often reduce the clutter too.

rozmister

The toy rotation is apparently amazing! I am a very proud aunty to my darling niece who is 1 and a bit but unfortunately everyone adores her and she has LOTS of toys. My sister is operating the rotation system with her toys divided into three piles.

This is really effective because otherwise LO pulls everything out, tears around the room picking them up and putting them back down, throws them and generally works herself into a toy based frenzy! The biggest problem my sister had with this is most of her toys are educational in some way but you don't learn a lot if you don't actually sit and play with them. Now she sits and plays with them happily and Sunday night is changeover night so on Monday morning her face lights up when she comes into a room full of new toys to play with that she forgot she had!

It's by far one of the best ideas I've heard for dealing with toy chaos, especially if your kids get spoilt with presents like my niece!